Kudos to the Boston Globe‘s John Hilliard for his article about private golf courses in affluent communities and the tax breaks they receive. During the winter of 2021-22, my husband and I were snowshoeing at Charles River Country Club here in Newton. An employee of the club approached and told us that we were trespassing and should leave immediately. We did not leave because I could not see why anyone would be bothered by an elderly couple enjoying the snow. Now I see that a fence has been erected along the street where the public usually accesses the area.
Many thanks to councilwoman Victoria Danberg who has worked for years to expose the arrogance and self-righteousness of these institutions, which take a lot from their host communities but give little back. If Newton country clubs paid their fair share of property taxes, as I do, Newton would not be seeing such urgent calls for an override. It is time that the state legislature reverses Chapter 61B, which allows private golf courses to get large tax breaks by claiming that their operations preserve open space for recreational uses. The spirit of that law was to increase public access to natural green spaces, not to exclude the public while deploying non-ecological lawn maintenance practices. Reversing Chapter 61B will open the door for Newton and other municipalities to collect what is rightfully theirs.
Halina Brown
Newton Highlands